- Can A Computer Have A Mind
Date:
Introduction
- lack of understanding of the fund laws of physics that prevents us from understanding concept of mind
- question of whether a mech. device could ever be said to think
The Turing Test
- operationalist view: computer thinks provided that it acts indistinguishably from the way a person acts while thinking*
- turing test unfair (if roles reversed), part of programmer task is to make the computer seem stupider than it actually is
- main problem - common sense problems
- proposal: weaken turing test, interviewer should feel that there is a conscious presence underlying replies
Artificial Intelligence
- first AI: W. Grey Walter’s tortoise
- humans take advantage of ‘judgements’ that rely on comparitively slow conscious assessment
- cut down computational complexity
- consciousness <=> forming judgements
An AI Approach to Pleasure and Pain
- pp-score (~RL) -> pleasure/pain matrix
- AI field ripe for improvement, but we might be missing some principle for true intelligence
Strong AI and Searle’s Chinese Room
- strong AI: mental qualities of a sort can be attributed to the logical functioning of any computational device
- mental activity= algorithm
- difference between humn brain and thermostat lies in higher order structure or self-referential properties of alo
- Searle: ispute that mental states and algo can be identified with one another
- Chinese room: stories given in chinese but operations for computer algo given in english w/ chinese symbols
- Searle could get correct response by just following the symbols w/o understanding…so computers do not need to understand!
- refutations
- understanding relates to patterns, not just words…recognize patterns in Chinese
- could be some algo so large that impossible for humans to solve, but computer could
- in essence, Searle claims that no algo can embody genuine understanding
- strong AI a form of Dualism (mind structure of AI is logical structure of an algo)
- further reading A Conversation with Einsteins Brain by Douglas Hofstadter
Hardware and Software
- all modern gen purpose computers are universal Turing machines
- strongest factor underlying strongAI: equivalence between physical computing devices (hardware relatively unimportant)
- interchangeable particles quantum physics….
- continual turnover of atoms in persons body != change in identity
- strongAI: persons aweness is software, manifestation is hardware